the von in a German or Austrians name means "of", it was also designated as a sign of rank, more or less like being knighted. so for example the Napoleonic era Prussian general August von Gnesinau...
Prince Karl Theodor of Bavaria (German:Karl Theodor Maximilian August von Bayern) (born Munich, July 7, 1795; died Tegernsee, August 16, 1875) was a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty. He was the...